STS-40

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STS-40

Spacelab Module LM1 in Columbia's payload bay, serving as the Spacelab Life Sciences laboratory
Mission type	Biosciences
Operator	NASA
COSPAR ID	1991-040A
SATCAT no.	21399
Mission duration	9 days, 2 hours, 14 minutes, 20 seconds
Distance travelled	6,083,223 kilometers (3,779,940 mi)
Orbits completed	146
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft	Space Shuttle Columbia
Landing mass	102,283 kilograms (225,495 lb)
Payload mass	12,374 kilograms (27,280 lb)
Crew
Crew size	7
Members	Bryan D. O'Connor Sidney M. Gutierrez James P. Bagian Tamara E. Jernigan M. Rhea Seddon F. Drew Gaffney Millie Hughes-Fulford
Start of mission
Launch date	5 June 1991, 13:24:51 (1991-06-05UTC13:24:51Z) UTC
Launch site	Kennedy LC-39B
End of mission
Landing date	14 June 1991, 15:39:11 (1991-06-14UTC15:39:12Z) UTC
Landing site	Edwards Runway 22
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Perigee altitude	287 kilometres (178 mi)
Apogee altitude	296 kilometres (184 mi)
Inclination	39.0 degrees
Period	90.4 min
Left to right - front row: Gaffney, Fulford, Seddon, Bagian; Back row: O'Connor, Jernigan, Gutierrez Space Shuttle program ← STS-39 STS-43 →

STS-40, the eleventh launch of Space Shuttle Columbia, was a nine-day mission in June 1991. It carried the Spacelab module for Spacelab Life Sciences 1 (SLS-1), the fifth Spacelab mission and the first dedicated solely to biology. STS-40 was the first spaceflight that included three women crew members.

Crew[]

Backup crew[]

Crew seating arrangements[]

Seat[1]	Launch	Landing	Seats 1–4 are on the Flight Deck. Seats 5–7 are on the Middeck.
S1	O'Connor	O'Connor
S2	Gutierrez	Gutierrez
S3	Bagian	Seddon
S4	Jernigan	Jernigan
S5	Seddon	Bagian
S6	Gaffney	Gaffney
S7	Hughes-Fulford	Hughes-Fulford

Mission highlights[]

Launch of STS-40

Launch originally set for 22 May 1991. Mission postponed less than 48 hours before launch when it became known that a leaking liquid hydrogen transducer in orbiter main propulsion system which was removed and replaced during leak testing in 1990, had failed an analysis by vendor. Engineers feared that one or more of the nine liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen transducers protruding into fuel and oxidizer lines could break off and be ingested by the engine turbopumps, causing engine failure.

In addition, one of orbiter five general purpose computers failed completely, along with one of the multiplexer demultiplexers that control orbiter hydraulics ordinance and orbiter maneuvering system / reaction control system functions in the aft compartment.

A new general purpose computer and multiplexer demultiplexer were installed and tested. One liquid hydrogen and two liquid oxygen transducers were replaced upstream in propellant flow system near the 17-inch (43 cm) disconnect area, which is protected by internal screen. Three liquid oxygen transducers replaced at engine manifold area, while three liquid hydrogen transducers here were removed and openings plugged. Launch reset for 8 am EDT, 1 June, but postponed again after several attempts to calibrate inertial measurement unit 2 failed. Unit was replaced and retested, and launch was rescheduled for 5 June. The mission launched successfully on 5 June 1991, at 9:24:51 am EDT and the mission had a launch orbiter weight of 114,290 kilograms (251,970 lb). The launch was also captured on IMAX cameras, and used in the 2015 documentary film Journey to Space.

It was the fifth dedicated Spacelab mission, Spacelab Life Sciences-1, and first dedicated solely to life sciences, using the habitable module. Mission featured most detailed and interrelated physiological measurements in space since 1973–1974 Skylab missions. Subjects were humans, 30 rodents and thousands of tiny jellyfish. Primary SLS-1 experiments studied six body systems; of 18 investigations, ten involved humans, seven involved rodents, and one used jellyfish.

Six body systems investigated were cardiovascular/cardiopulmonary (heart, lungs and blood vessels); renal/endocrine (kidneys and hormone-secreting organs and glands); blood (blood plasma); immune system (white blood cells); musculoskeletal (muscles and bones); and neurovestibular (brains and nerves, eyes and inner ear). Other payloads included twelve Getaway Special (GAS) canisters installed on GAS bridge in cargo bay for experiments in materials science, plant biology and cosmic radiation (see G-616); Middeck Zero-Gravity Dynamics Experiment (MODE); and seven Orbiter Experiments ().

Landing was on 14 June 1991, at 8:39:11 am PDT, on Runway 22, at Edwards Air Force Base, California. Rollout distance: 2,866 metres (9,403 ft). Rollout time: 55 seconds. Orbiter returned to KSC 21 June. Landing Weight: 102,755 kilograms (226,536 lb).

Wake-up calls[]

NASA began its longstanding tradition of waking up astronauts with music during Apollo 15. Each track is specially chosen, often by the astronauts' families, and usually has a special meaning to an individual member of the crew, or is applicable to their daily activities.

See also[]

• G-616 "The effects of Cosmic Radiation on Floppy Disks"
• List of human spaceflights
• List of Space Shuttle missions
• Outline of space science
• Space Shuttle

References[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to STS-40.

• NASA mission summary
• STS-40 Video Highlights

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.